I took a long break after the first few articles in my Star Wars FFG game. There were three factors led to that break. In this article, I’m going to discuss each of those issues and how I plan to mitigate them as I kick off a new game.
First, I got crazy busy at work and had less time for gaming. We were facing a major crunch and a series of crises that eventually led to a round of layoffs (including my own). I’ve done some one-off consulting and soul searching over the last few months, and I’m close to starting a new job. I cannot really avoid or mitigate this type of real-life issue, but I’m going to aim to play and write shorter scenes in an effort to find a better balance. Gaming is my escape.
Second, I found myself very burned out by the narrative dice mechanics in the FFG system. I’ve discovered that I need a system with slightly more deterministic dice results. Making up the player and GM narrative all the time can be exhausting. I think a clearer success/failure mechanic will help with that, including a different ruleset and better use of the GM emulator. I’m going to use Traveller (Mongoose, 2nd Edition) for my next game — there are a plethora of tools and supplements from the various editions of Traveller that work together very nicely and provide clear-cut outcomes to many tasks. I think this will help.
Finally, I found the lengthy narrative style of my write-ups was also burning me out. I want more gaming and less dice-prompted journaling. So, I’m going to summarize minor conversations instead of playing them out.
I think these changes will help me get back — and stay — on track!
Imaginative Diversions 